1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera operating apparatus available for a surveillance system, and more particularly to a camera operating apparatus equipped with a joystick to operate at least one camera unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Up until now, there have been proposed a wide variety of conventional camera operating apparatuses each equipped with a joystick to operate at least one camera unit at an operation speed and at an operation direction which are to be changed by an operator.
The conventional camera operating apparatuses of this type have so far been used for such a surveillance system available for watching unqualified people and other intruders intruding into a special room which does not permit people with any permission from entering. One typical example of the conventional camera operating apparatuses is shown in FIG. 7 as being provided in combination with a prior-art surveillance system 700 which comprises a camera unit 710, a system unit 720 for controlling an operation speed and an operation direction of the camera unit 710, a display unit 730 for displaying an image taken by the camera unit 710 on a screen thereof, and the camera operating apparatus 740 for operating the camera unit 710 at the operation speed and at the operation direction which are to be changed by the operator in response to operation commands inputted therein. The system unit 720 is electrically connected to the camera unit 710, the display unit 730 and the camera operating apparatus 740 through signal transmitting lines 701, 702 and 703, respectively.
Description will now be made on how the image taken by the camera unit 710 is displayed on the screen of the display unit 730.
When the camera unit 710 is operated to take an image to be displayed on the screen of the display unit 730, the camera unit 710 is firstly driven by the camera operating apparatus 740 to transform the image into an image signal outputted to the signal transmitting line 701. The image signal thus outputted to the signal transmitting line 701 is then transmitted to the system unit 720 before being inputted to the display unit 730.
The image signal is then transformed into an image to be displayed on the screen of the display unit 730.
In order to have the camera unit 710 operated by the operation commands of the camera operating apparatus 740 to photograph an image, the camera operating apparatus 740 is operated to receive the operation commands respectively indicative of photographing directions, magnifications and the like inputted by the operator while he or she is watching the screen of the display unit 730. The camera operating apparatus 740 inputted with the operation commands is then operated to transform the operation commands into a command signal to be transmitted to the signal transmitting line 703. The command signal thus transmitted to the signal transmitting line 703 is then inputted to the system unit 720 where the command signal is then transformed into a drive signal to drive the camera unit 710 to be outputted to the camera unit 710 by way of the signal transmitting line 701. The camera unit 710 thus received the drive signal from the system unit 720 is at this time operated to change the photographing directions, magnifications and the like into new ones.
As will be seen from the above, there has been described only one camera unit 710 provided in combination with the system unit 720, the display unit 730 and the camera operating apparatus 740 in the conventional surveillance system 700 for the purpose of simplifying the description and assisting in understanding about the whole operation of the surveillance system 700.
In reality, such a conventional surveillance system 800, however, is as shown in FIG. 8 to comprise a plurality of camera units 810, a plurality of system units 820, a plurality of display units 830, and a plurality of camera operating apparatuses 840. The conventional surveillance system 800 thus constructed allows the operator to selectively operate those camera operating apparatuses 840 to input to camera operating apparatuses 840 operation commands indicative of selecting one or more camera units 810 and one or more display units 830. This fact leads to the fact that the operator can select one or more camera operating apparatuses 840 not only to have the image displayed on the screen of one or more display units 830 in accordance with the image taken by one or more selected camera units 810 but to operate the camera units 810 under various operation states optioned by the operator.
Here, as the camera operating apparatus 840 forming part of the conventional surveillance system 800 is used a CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) type of camera operating apparatus which is hereinafter referred simply to xe2x80x9ccamera operating apparatusxe2x80x9d. The camera operating apparatus used heretofore is generally equipped with a joystick designed to input operation commands by the operator to ensure that the camera unit is operated under various operation states changed in photographing directions, magnifications and the like. The joystick is generally mounted on a retainer and pivotable at a variable inclination angle between the axis of the joystick and the surface of the retainer.
The joystick thus constructed serves to produce the operation command indicative of the inclination angle varied in response to the operation speed of the camera unit. More specifically, the operation speed of the camera unit increases as the inclination angle of the joystick increases in accordance with the relation between the inclination angle of the joystick and the operation speed of the camera unit.
The conventional camera operating apparatus, however, encounters such a problem that the relation between the inclination angle of the joystick and the operation speed of the camera unit is fixedly predetermined by each of the camera operating apparatuses, resulting from the fact that the relation between the inclination angle of the joystick and the operation speed of the camera unit cannot be changed depending upon the needs by the operator.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a camera operating apparatus which facilitates to change the relation between the inclination angle of the joystick and the operation speed of the camera unit depending upon the needs by the operator to allow the operator to readily operate the joystick.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera operating apparatus for operating at least one camera unit at an operation speed which is to be changed by an operator, comprising: a retainer having an operation surface; a joystick mounted on the retainer and having a center axis and a center point located on the center axis, the joystick being pivotable around the center point of the joystick to assume a first angular position where the joystick is inclined with respect to the operation surface of the retainer, and a second angular position where the joystick is inclined with respect to the operation surface of the retainer at an inclination angle between the center axes of the joystick positioned at the first and second angular positions, the inclination angle being variably set with respect to the operation speed; angle signal inputting means for inputting an angle signal indicative of the inclination angle of the joystick; a plurality of keys each operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, each of the keys being operative to input a speed signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof, the keys including a specified key selected for the operation speed of the camera unit desired by the operator, information recording means for recording specific relevant information between the angle signal inputted from the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted from the specified key; and signal processing means for processing the speed signal in response to the angle signal from the angle signal inputting means to be outputted to the camera unit in accordance with the specific relevant information recorded by the information recording means.
The information recording means may be operative to record the specific relevant information when the signal processing means is operative to receive the angle signal from the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal from the specified key.
The keys may include a plurality of numerical keys which are selectively operated to input the speed signal to the signal processing means.
In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera operating apparatus for operating at least one camera unit at an operation speed which is to be changed by an operator, comprising: a retainer having an operation surface; a joystick mounted on the retainer and having a center axis and a center point located on the center axis, the joystick being pivotable around the center point of the joystick to assume a first angular position where the joystick is inclined with respect to the operation surface of the retainer, and a second angular position where the joystick is inclined with respect to the operation surface of the retainer at an inclination angle between the center axes of the joystick positioned at the first and second angular positions, the inclination angle being variably set with respect to the operation speed; angle signal inputting means for inputting an angle signal indicative of the inclination angle of the joystick; a plurality of keys each operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, each of the keys being operative to input a speed signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof, the keys including a specified key selected for the operation speed of the camera unit desired by the operator, information recording means for recording specific relevant information between the angle signal inputted from the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted from the specified key; and signal processing means for receiving and processing the angle signal inputted from the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted from the specified key, the signal processing means being operative to selectively assume two different operation states consisting of a first operation state under which the specific relevant information is recorded by the information recording means in accordance with the angle signal inputted by the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted by the specified key, and a second operation state under which the speed signal in response to the angle signal inputted by the angle signal inputting means is outputted to the camera unit in accordance with the specific relevant information recorded by the information recording means.
The camera operating apparatus may further comprise state setting means for selectively setting the first and second operation states of the signal processing means.
The state setting means may include a first operation state holding key operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, the first operation state holding key being operative to input a first operation state holding signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof to the signal processing means to allow the signal processing means to assume the first operation state.
The state setting means may include a second operation state holding key operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, the second operation state holding key being operative to input a second operation state holding signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof to the signal processing means to allow the signal processing means to assume the second operation state.
The keys may include a plurality of numerical keys which are selectively operated to input the speed signal to the signal processing means.
In accordance with a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera operating apparatus for operating at least one camera unit at an operation speed which is to be changed by an operator, comprising: a retainer having an operation surface; a joystick mounted on the retainer and having a center axis and a center point located on the center axis, the joystick being pivotable around the center point of the joystick to assume a first angular position where the joystick is inclined with respect to the operation surface of the retainer, and a second angular position where the joystick is inclined with respect to the operation surface of the retainer at an inclination angle between the center axes of the joystick positioned at the first and second angular positions, the inclination angle being variably set with respect to the operation speed; angle signal inputting means for inputting an angle signal indicative of the inclination angle of the joystick, the angle signal inputting means having a terminal having the angle signal outputted therethrough; a plurality of keys each operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, each of the keys being operative to input a speed signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof, the keys including a specified key selected for the operation speed of the camera unit desired by the operator, the keys having a terminal having the respective speed signals outputted therethrough; information recording means for recording specific relevant information between the angle signal inputted from the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted from the specified key, the information recording means having a terminal having the angle signal and the speed signal inputted and outputted therethrough; and signal processing means for receiving and processing the angle signal inputted from the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted from the specified key, the signal processing means being operative to selectively assume two different operation states consisting of a first operation state under which the specific relevant information is recorded by the information recording means in accordance with the angle signal inputted by the angle signal inputting means and the speed signal inputted by the specified key, and a second operation state under which the speed signal in response to the angle signal inputted by the angle signal inputting means is outputted to the camera unit in accordance with the specific relevant information recorded by the information recording means, the signal processing means having a first terminal having the angle signal inputted therethrough, a second terminal having the speed signal inputted therethrough, a third terminal having the angle signal and the speed signal inputted and outputted therethrough and a fourth terminal having the speed signal outputted therethrough.
The camera operating apparatus may further comprise state setting means for selectively setting the first and second operation states of the signal processing means.
The state setting means may include a first operation state holding key operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, the first operation state holding key being operative to input a first operation state holding signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof to the signal processing means to allow the signal processing means to assume the first operation state, the first operation state holding key having a terminal having the first operation state holding signal outputted therethrough.
The state setting means may include a second operation state holding key operatively arranged on the retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, the second operation state holding key being operative to input a second operation state holding signal indicative of the key-pushed action thereof to the signal processing means to allow the signal processing means to assume the second operation state, the second operation state holding key having a terminal having the second operation state holding signal outputted therethrough.
The keys may include a plurality of numerical keys which are selectively operated to input the speed signal to the signal processing means.